


A Mask of Shame

by OhanaHoku



Series: Whumptober 2020 Prompts [24]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Angst, Evil Uther Pendragon (Merlin), Forced Mutism, Gen, Good Morgana (Merlin), Humiliation, Hurt, Hurt Morgana (Merlin), Masks of Shame, Medieval Form of Punishment, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mostly it just hurts, October Prompt Challenge, One Shot, One Shot Collection, Pillory, Prompt Fic, Prompt Fill, Public Humiliation, Punishment, Short One Shot, Tumblr Prompt, Whump, Whumptober, Whumptober 2020, before she turned evil, no. 24
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:07:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27289897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OhanaHoku/pseuds/OhanaHoku
Summary: Uther has reached his limit and forces Morgana to endure the punishment of public humiliation.Day Twenty-four of Whumptober 2020 - You're Not Making Any Sense - Forced Mutism
Relationships: Morgana & Uther Pendragon (Merlin)
Series: Whumptober 2020 Prompts [24]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949965
Comments: 6
Kudos: 20





	A Mask of Shame

**Author's Note:**

> I had to give Morgana a chance to shine for Whumptober as well, so here you go!
> 
> Triggers in tags.

“I’m sorry it had to come to this, Morgana. But you have left me no choice. You have become too outspoken, and for that, you must be punished. Perhaps this will teach you to hold your tongue.” Uther said, a look of disgust in his eyes as he regarded his daughter.

Her head was covered in an ornate iron mask, fashioned to look like an ugly woman’s face with a long tongue sticking out of its mouth, the nose misshapen and grotesque. In addition to the mask of shame on her face, Morgana was locked into the pillory. This forced her to stand in the center of the village square for all to see. A small wooden plaque was hung around her neck, stating her name and the offense she had committed, slander against the king.

“You’re sentenced to serve this punishment until sunset,” Uther said, ignoring the way her she jerked and pulled against the wood encircling her wrists. The pillory was sturdy enough to withstand her escape attempts. “If you have learned your lesson by then, I won’t force you to endure the same humiliation tomorrow.”

With that, he walked away, leaving Morgana alone as the sun slowly started to rise.

##### ##### #####

Morgana glared after Uther through the small eyeholes in the iron mask, seething in anger as he delivered his self-righteous speech. The metal bit on the inside of the cruel torture device pressed uncomfortably against her tongue. Though at least she could be thankful that she had not been forced to wear a mask with a spiked gag.

Once Uther left, Morgana was left alone in the village square with only a single royal guard for company as the town woke up. She was clenching her fists and rolling her wrists around in the stocks as she nervously waited, her stomach roiling anxiously.

The first to come into the square were the men as they went to work, and tears pricked Morgana’s eyes as they jeered and laughed at her predicament. Some barely gave her a second glance as they passed by, though others that leered silently at her, their almost hungry gazes making her tremble in fear. If it wasn’t for the guard posted at her side, she would have been utterly vulnerable, and who knows what those men could have done to her then?

The woman and children came out next; the children giggling as they pointed to her and asked their mothers if she had been naughty.

The women were thankfully a little more sympathetic. While some still tittered at seeing her, others merely gave her a sympathetic glance and shushed their children, hurrying them along.

One elderly woman, though, hobbled up to her and read the plaque around her neck. She sighed then. “Oh, you poor dear.” She whispered, reaching up to hold Morgana’s hand as she leaned in next to her face. “Be strong, young one. You are destined for much greater things than this.”

Morgana clenched her eyes shut, whimpering softly as her tears finally spilled over. She squeezed the woman’s hand back, holding it tight as the woman reached up and gently dried the tears that slid down the metal.

“Now, be brave, love. Albion’s coming is just around the corner.” She whispered before pulling away, hobbling down the road.

Morgana thrashed against the pillory, wanting to scream, to beg the woman to come back, to not leave her alone. But with the bit in her mouth, she couldn’t speak. She couldn’t even scream.

So instead, she lifted her head proudly, clinging to the memory of the woman’s warm, reassuring touch. She didn’t know what Albion was, but the sheer confidence in the woman’s voice gave her the courage to face the mocking jeers of her audience head-on.

**Author's Note:**

> Word Count - 628. Now, before you ask where Arthur and Merlin are, because they would not have allowed this happen, they're off on quest/hunting trip/or something, so they don't know this is happening.
> 
> And yes, masks of shame were used in Europe through the middle ages to the 18th century. If you'd like to know more about them, you can look at these links for some light reading on the subject. [Link 1](https://museum-of-artifacts.blogspot.com/2017/02/medieval-masks-of-shame.html) [Link 2](http://torturemuseum.net/en/the-mask-of-shame/)
> 
> [ my tumblr](https://ohanahoku-ao3.tumblr.com/)


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